Editor, The Beacon:

I agree with Jeff Shepherd’s observations in his letter in the Dec. 21-27 Beacon that homelessness, both locally and across our nation, has become an ever-increasingly frustrating and visible problem. While I am no fan of Congressman Waltz’s positions, to be fair, however, the problem is not just his to solve. Although it would be nice to see some original and creative solutions proposed by our elected officials on all levels instead of just parroting their party rhetoric, the problem is complex.

On one hand, while we all deserve to have our streets and hometowns clean, orderly and free of annoying panhandling, we have to deal with the freedom and rights of individuals to live where and how they choose. Our legislators, both locally and nationally, along with law enforcement and the judiciary, have a fine line to navigate between protecting everyone’s rights. I, too, wish we could end, or at least mitigate, the problem, both here in DeLand and, it would seem, everywhere else I travel these days.

Jeff cites, among the many causes responsible, low wages, the high cost of housing, and the lack of access to health care, particularly mental health.

To be sure, there are some of the homeless who are where they are due to unfortunate financial circumstances. These are the easily resolvable cases, able to be remedied with temporary housing, training and counseling.

Unfortunately, I believe the vast majority of our homeless are such by choice. Most suffer from some degree of mental illness, which our society is woefully ill-prepared to deal with. Many are veterans, many are addicts, and many will never have a permanent solution to their situation. Where and what to do with, and for them, remains a challenge. NIMBY shelters do not work, except possibly as temporary housing for brief periods of inclement weather. The homeless, as we all have seen, like to be in the urban centers where there are people, movement, and the ability to panhandle a few dollars, etc.

Every jurisdiction, town, city, county and state, is different. Climate may or may not factor into homelessness; I have seen just as many up North in the cold as down here in Florida. Some places are more liberal and tolerant, others less so. But the problem remains a national one. The answer, I am afraid, is not a simple one.

The role of our federal government may be limited to making grants and funds available to local administrations, and perhaps easing some of the restrictions on what constitutes one person’s rights over those of a community at large. I wish I had the answer, but I don’t. However, I don’t think it’s fair to single out any one political leader and expect them to come up with a solution either. This is one case where it will indeed take a village.

Don Kanfer

DeLand